Savvy Entrepreneur: Push Through The Slow Times

Have sales been feeling a little stagnant lately? Have you hit the after-the-holidays-before-the-spring slump? It's normal; things tend to slow down a bit in January, February and sometimes, even March. Regardless of being normal, this may cause mild or even severe panic for some of us. I'm here to tell you to take a deep breath, take a few, and calm down. All you need is a new perspective.

The slow times do not signal the end of the world, they are temporary, just a part of the cycle and something you can use to your benefit. Instead of focusing on the amount of money coming into your bank account, look at the extra time you have since you're not filling orders.

This is the time to focus on making your business better, getting things done that will allow you to run more smoothly when sales pick up again. This is the time to focus on the things that get pushed aside when you’re busy. I promise all that hard work will pay off in sales. You just need a little patience.

Have you been meaning to update your website? Now is the perfect time to take new product shots or rewrite your product descriptions and about page. Block out an hour or two a day and within a week or so you'll have it all done.

Or maybe you've been thinking of expanding into new markets. Spend the extra time you have researching these markets. What problems can you solve, how do they get their information, what key points need to be addressed for a purchase to happen?

Keep in touch with your customers; sometimes they just need a little nudge. This slow time is perfect for reaching out with an update on your shop, new things you’re working on, or even a special sale just for them.

Collect inspiration for new products or a website refresh. Read new blogs, waste an hour or two on Pinterest (you know you can, I now give you permission), go shopping out in the real world. Your brain and creativity needs to be fed just like you do. Find some tasty vittles.

Keeping up with Facebook and Twitter is one of the first things to get neglected when you’re busy, so get back in the conversation and make some new connections. Participate in a Twitter chat, see what topics are trending, find some new competitors and “listen in” on their conversations.

Use this downtime to work on your business, give yourself a little creative refresh, or connect with customers and peers. Soon enough things will be moving again and you’ll find yourself wishing you had just a fraction of the time you have now.

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Genevieve not only writes The Savvy Entrepreneur she is the Co-Founder of Lightbox SF where she empowers creatives to take over the world. Check out the blog or how to work with her.

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If you're an Etsy seller in the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Katy or Steph about joining SFEtsy!

Savvy Entrepreneur: You Don't Have To Be Super Woman

I'm sure many of you suffer from the same affliction I do... the need to do it all, perfectly, right now. However today I'm admitting defeat, not failure, just defeat. The holidays got the better of me, I made too many plans and promises to myself and it's just not all going to happen the way I want it to.

I'm raising the white flag of surrender, saying I just can't do it all and most importantly acknowledging this before I have any true battle wounds. I am not beat down and I didn't fail, I just bit off more than I could chew (pardon the mixing of metaphors, my brain isn't too sharp today).

I'm writing this because I had intended for a much more in-depth post on finding your rhythm to make your days more productive, but that's not happening. And after a little fighting back I realized that was ok. I don't always have to do it all, all the time, perfectly.

I'm writing this to remind you of that fact for two reasons. This is the time of year when we're most likely to overextend ourselves and pay for it in the end. It's also the time of year that we tend to reflect and turn toward what we wished had gone better.

I'm begging you not to do either. Most likely many of the promises you made over these past few weeks were only to yourself. Pick one thing, decide not to do it and relish the slightly lighter feeling your shoulders have. Then when you feel yourself starting to drift toward the "should haves" and "wish I would haves" of the past year, stop! Look instead toward all you did accomplish and what you learned that will take you further next year.

Now go enjoy your holidays knowing that even though you're not Super Woman, no one else is either and you're the smarter one for admitting it.

Happy Holidays!!!

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I encourage comments directly to this post, but also feel free to email me directly with questions, reactions, struggles, etc. genevieve [at] lightboxsf [dot] com

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If you're an Etsy seller in the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Jen from Mama's Magic Studio about joining SFEtsy!

Tuestorial - Baby Shower Planning

So this week I have exciting news - I'm going to be an Aunt! My big sister, Sarah, is having a baby boy...and it's my duty, as best future auntie ever - to throw her a baby shower that she'll never forget!

This week, I wanted to share my tips and tricks on how to plan a baby shower - or really any party without breaking your bank or your back in the process...all the while, looking like a professional party planner!

THE PRE-SHOWER PLANNING
My biggest advice for someone on a budget... use your resources! Ask your friends to take on a little bit here and there - and before you know it...you've got yourself a great party - with lots of meaningful details. This entry is broken down into two pieces...as you know, a lot goes into a great party...and I want to make sure I share my tips along the way.

The Theme for this party: Little Man

FIRST: Pick Your Color Story

For any party you might be planning, it's easiest to start by just picking the color story that you'd like to match everything to. Don't pick crazy colors - because in the end...it will be hard to find matching napkins...but look for something creative. I think I've mentioned this before, but Color Trends is a great online resource for all things COLOR. :) some people have already planned out great ideas for color stories.
Starting here is never a bad idea.

However, I started my planning a little different.
I looked to our own team member Shannon Hegarty who creates lovely digital scrapbook kits to provide the patterning for my invitations. I let her decide on the colors for the patterns – from there... I had my color story which I'll be carrying through the whole party.
Here's what she made:




SECOND: Invitations on the Fly

So this was my favorite part, because I got to use Shannon's patterns in my invitations & do a cute little baby drawing of my sister's baby boy - who has been given the name Odin (the Viking god). After I finished up my design (back and front) in Photoshop I actually ended up going to MOO.com and uploading three different color combinations for some extra whimsy. Look to your fellow Etsy team members if you're in need of a creative invitation for your upcoming party.




I also used my back design to make some great stickers at Moo later, which you will see on the cupcakes next week.

THIRD: Don't forget the cupcakes

I was going to order cupcakes from a local baker...but couldn't for the life of me think of where or how or or or...so many decisions! But then this little light bulb went off... my friend Cara! She runs a small bakery out of her home Brown Sugar Bakery over in the East Bay...and she would be willing to meet me on my way to the party so that my cupcakes are fresh and also don't get damaged.
Cara took the left over stickers I had from my invitation order for decorations... stay tuned for photos!

FORTH: Tie in the theme

To help tie in the theme (Little Man) into a couple other places. I made some Mustaches on a Stick which will be great for party photos.

Lastly, I purchased chocolate cigars as party favors to cheers to the occasion with a little fun sprinkled in!

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If you're an Etsy seller in the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Jen from Mama's Magic Studio about joining SFEtsy!

San Francisco Hearts ART - Etsy & Crafting Community Connect at MOCFA

Etsy Meet-Up for I Heart Art: San Francisco at the MOCFA
Photo courtesy of Vanessa Bertozzi - Etsy Admin

One of the best things about running an Etsy business is experiencing a great sense of community with other creative entrepreneurs. What's even better is when those same individuals can connect with other local businesses, museums and schools to strengthen and build up that very same community to whole new levels!

We had a GREAT turnout for our I Heart Art: San Francisco Meet-up at the MOCFA this past Saturday, April 2nd. Not only were SF Etsy members coming from as far as Mt. Shasta, CA, but various Etsy Admin joined us for an open discussion about what this new program could mean for our local artisans, artists, and crafters.

Etsy's I Heart Art programs vary from city to city, but the common goal for each and every project has been to enrich the creative communities in which they take place. This can often be done by connecting the different demographics within these communities while working closely with various organizations to be able to make art and craft more accessible and meaningful to the general public.

Local SF Etsy Team members brainstorming ideas for I Heart Art: San Francisco
[Left to Right: Katy Atchison, Jen Johnson, Genevieve & Shelly from Lightbox SF]
Photo by Steph Cortés

This past Saturday, before the larger meet-up, a bunch of savvy small business owners from the SF Etsy Street Team came together to meet with Vanessa Bertozzi, the Director of Community & Education at Etsy, to brainstorm about what we envisioned I Heart Art to look like in San Francisco. "The idea is to dream BIG," Vanessa beamed, "And once we've got the ideas out, we can focus on what we really want." This opened up a whole series of lists: from local businesses or collectives that were already on board with the vision of a more artful SF to incredibly helpful resources & activities to assist local sellers honing their craft. A few of these included:

• Open studio tours of various local artists in neighbourhoods all around the City
• Workshops or panel discussions guided by SF Celebrity Sellers to help Etsy business owners with everything from effective social media marketing to fab product photography tips & tricks
• Special showcases and events held at museums like the California Academy of Sciences and Museum of Craft & Folk Art that invite the public to participate in hands-on workshops
• And in Portland, they've done a successful Mixer Match! - which is kind of like Speed Dating for Etsy Sellers, but more like "Speed Networking—a whirlwind night of rapid-fire elevator pitches and electrified business connections!" [Read more about I Heart Art: PDX's Mixer Match here]

Those are just a few of the many ideas so far. At the core of every I Heart Art program is collaboration with and within the local community. SF Etsy folks, and likeminded local creative types, this means you!

Tons of SF Etsy members and local business owns alike, mingling at the MOCFA
Photo courtesy of Vanessa Bertozzi - Etsy Admin

It was fantastic to see so many people come out to the meet up, and there seems to be a lot of interest in what I Heart Art: San Francisco might look like. We are very excited by all the possibilities and still in the planning and preparing stages for this project. We welcome your input, and if you have relevant resources or info to share, we'd love to hear about it! 

If you have feedback or suggestions -- for programs, workshops, events, etc -- we'd love to hear that too. Please leave us a comment or you can convo SF Team Leader Steph of nerdJERK or Team Captain Jen of Mama's Magic Studio.

Stay tuned for more details about I Heart Art: San Francisco in the coming weeks!

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If you're an Etsy seller in the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Jen from Mama's Magic Studio about joining SFEtsy!